Republican Hedge Fund Manager Backs Gay Marriage

New York (HedgeCo.Net) – Paul Singer, the founder and CEO of hedge fund Elliott Management, presented awards to Ted Olson and David Boies, the two lawyers that won the Claifornia Supreme Court case challenging Proposition 8.

“The building block of every community is family,” the hedge fund founder said at the Citizens Committee for New York City on Monday. “Securing for gays and lesbians the basic right to have their relationships and families recognized as part of a community makes all of our communities stronger.”

Singer provided $1 million to start a PAC in 2012 named American Unity PAC. According to the New York Times, the PAC’s “sole mission will be to encourage Republican candidates to support same-sex marriage, in part by helping them to feel financially shielded from any blowback from well-funded groups that oppose it.”

“Singer’s passion for the cause stems in part from the experiences of his gay son and son-in-law, who were wed in Massachusetts, the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.” Reuters reports, “(He) worked on legalizing same-sex marriage in New York state and created a political action committee to back the campaigns of Republicans who support marriage equality.”

The hedge fund magnate was also the top Republican donor in 2013, giving $1.25 million to the Republican Governors Association, which took in $27 million.

Update: (via Voices) State records show that Singer also put $85,000 into The Illinois Unity PAC which backs House Representatives Ron Sandack and Ed Sullivan, both men are Republicans who voted in favor of same sex marriage.